UBC moves wine research centre to Kelowna campus
UBC Okanagan campus is now home to the university's wine research centre that will serve as both a research facility and will also offer public programs.
The renowned wine region of B.C.’s Okanagan Valley now boasts a new research hub, as UBC shifts the headquarters of its acclaimed wine research centre from its Vancouver campus to its Kelowna-based campus, a UBCO news release reads.
The wine research centre is only one of two such research centres in Canada and will be led by director Jacques-Olivier Pesme. Pesme is a founding member of the Board of the Institute of Vine and Wine Science in Bordeaux, France, and has been working with UBC since 2012, the university said.
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“The Okanagan is an ideal environment for the next chapter of the (research centre),” Pesme said in the release. “All the major research and education wine institutes in the world are situated in close proximity to vineyards, wineries and wine visitors. The (research centre) will combine operations between the Okanagan — home to more than 80 per cent of B.C. vineyard acreage, and Vancouver — a gateway to the world.”
B.C.’s wine industry has an annual impact of $2.8 billion and employs about 12,000 people, according to the UBC. The research centre's initiatives include plans for a sensory analysis lab in Kelowna and will offer programs for the public to learn about wine tasting, oenology and the local industry.
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